I love combining machine quilting with hand quilting lately
I initially did straight line machine quilting all over this little quilt, nothing fancy
just enough to secure the layers without distracting from the scrappy feel of the quilt.
And now I'm making good progress with some hand quilting.

oh, and then there has also been a little bit more 'whimsy' love
I'm machine piecing these 9" blocks and they take about an hour to make

The tiny check and red & white stripe are going to be consistent in these blocks.

Lots of fun choosing only just two other fabrics each time,
instead of my usual all-out scrappy . . .

Linking up with Beth for "main crush Monday" here
and with Esther for "WOW:Wednesday" over here

Just to give you all the heads up -Julie & I have decided to post'Sew, Stitch, Snap, SHARE' linkups everyfortnight nowSee you back here Wednesday 5 July

oh, and just a bit more today #62
6 1/2yr old Olive wanted to make me a birthday cake last week
She chose the receipe from her 'Gruffalo' cookbook . . .
wrote up her own shopping list & went shopping with gramps . . .
and then she measured & poured & stirred & decorated with granny . . .

Saturday, 24 June 2017

One of the best kinds of sewing is the spontaneous, unplanned kind, don't you think?

Earlier in the week I spotted the #junequiltqal over here at crazymomquilts
And again, this was so not on my 'to do' list, but I kept checking up on everyone's progress
and yesterday, I thought I'd have a bit of colour play too on a rainy day . . .
you know, just to see . . .

I seem to be a bit stuck on making little quilts lately but that's ok

Pat-next-door is going to be a great grandmother in October, and requested a 'pink' quilt

so I'm hoping my 'pinksquared' quilt will fit the bill.

Linking up with Myra over here for 'finished or not Friday'
and with Cynthia for 'oh scrap' here

Wednesday, 21 June 2017

These blocks are from a quilt in Judy Newman's new book,
'quilts made for life made with love'- see here for more details

Spreading some more blogging love today
- a couple of things really caught my eye from our last linkup
Did you see the pretty bird stitching Julie from justjulielouis working on at the moment?

And my other pickwas Audrey's quilts over here at quiltyfolk
Here's a little peek at two of her quilts, 'coins & baskets' and 'an uncertain crossroad' quilts
While Audrey & I have very different 'styles' it's always a treat reading her posts.
She writes brilliantly about 'the process'
and it's so interesting following along with her on her unique 'quilty' journeys!

And what are you working on right now?

Whatever you're sewing or stitching, you can link it up here.

Just follow these simple guidelines:

1. Link up from any post from the past week that features something you have been sewing or stitching. You can write as much or as little about your project as you like, or simply let your photos do the talking.
2. Somewhere in your post, please link back to this post.
3. Please comment on a couple of the other Sew, Stitch, Snap, SHARE links - its fun to receive comments from new people, and we are trying to encourage people to read blogs and keep blogging alive too. Hope you find some new inspiration too!

Thanks for joining us again, we can't wait to see what you have all been creating,Julie & Linda

Started reading 'Bel Canto' by Ann Patchett - the story is riveting
and I just can't put it down!

Briefly, it's about members of a revolutionary movement in Peru who are held hostages at the Japanese ambassador’s house for 126 days. The novel explores the tensions and unexpected alliances that develop when a group of culturally disparate strangers – the terrorists and their hostages – are confined in close quarters for months.

Tuesday, 6 June 2017

- trial blockFirst up, what's happening in my sewing room this week?
Well, I do so want to start something new
but {sigh} I'm madly trying to work on my present WiP.
I did console myself one evening by faffing around with these lovely scraps though . . .

. . . imagine the possibilites !

There were lots of inspiring projects from our last link up

My pickwas Maryse's 'courthouse steps' quilt, did you see it too?
It's all paper pieced with heaps of matchstick quilting.
A truely wonderful quilt,
pop over here to read more about it and see lots more of Maryse's creations.

And what are you working on right now?

Whatever you're sewing or stitching, you can link it up here.

Just follow these simple guidelines:

1. Link up from any post from the past week that features something you have been sewing or stitching. You can write as much or as little about your project as you like, or simply let your photos do the talking.
2. Somewhere in your post, please link back to this post.
3. Please comment on a couple of the other Sew, Stitch, Snap, SHARE links - its fun to receive comments from new people, and we are trying to encourage people to read blogs and keep blogging alive too.

Thanks for joining us again, we can't wait to see what you have all been creating,Julie & Linda

Saturday, 3 June 2017

Well there's been very little action on the sewing front for me this week,
lots of family time instead.

We have my BinL and his wife staying with us, on their way to Vietnam.
I offered her a quilt and, to my surprise,
she chose this very old blue & brown quilt, made up of stars & courthouse steps blocks.
Are you ready for a quick trip down my scrappy memory lane?

It was one of the first times I'd tried combining my early small selection of Kaffes
with other fabrics available at that time.
It's very 'old school'
but I still love, love that Kaffe blue floral I used for the outer border& binding!

I had it machine quilted while I was on holiday down at Waihi a long time ago.
And then it sat on the shelf.
For years.

I'm so glad this old quilt has finally found a home and will be used & loved.
Hope you enjoyed this little peek back into my quilty past !

Hi I'm Linda. Here's a little "show & tell" of my quilty adventures. I am a mother of two grown up children & granny to two now! I've been making quilts on & off for a few years, I particularly enjoy making colourful scrappy quilts! Comments always welcome .........Oh, and I'm happy to share my pics but please credit them with a link back to this blog, thanx!